The Assignment

When a pop­u­lar high school teacher assigns a con­tro­ver­sial project ask­ing his stu­dents to debate the pros and cons of Hitler’s Final Solu­tion, with half the class defend­ing the Nazi point of view, the town erupts in con­fu­sion and shock. Two seniors can­not accept their teacher’s con­tention that the debate is a legit­i­mate edu­ca­tion­al expe­ri­ence.

Col­lege accep­tances, aca­d­e­m­ic awards, and edu­ca­tion­al, fam­i­ly, and social pres­sures make the seniors hes­i­tate to pub­licly protest this assign­ment, espe­cial­ly when they find out that the prin­ci­pal sup­ports the teacher. Once the teens have made their stand, how­ev­er, pre­vi­ous­ly unseen fis­sures in the com­mu­ni­ty begin to widen and anti­semitism grad­u­al­ly emerges.

Fam­i­ly ties, close friend­ships, social accep­tance, fear of per­son­al fall-out, and a deep respect for learn­ing peri­od­i­cal­ly shake their resolve, but they per­sist in protest­ing this appalling assign­ment. Sup­port­ive of one anoth­er, the teens dig deeply into their souls and find the courage to pro­ceed. Fam­i­ly secrets emerge under the pres­sure they face, mak­ing their fight feel even more sig­nif­i­cant and personal. Based on an actu­al event, this grip­ping sto­ry will have a last­ing impact, reach­ing and, per­haps, chang­ing the read­er.

Author, Liza Wiemer, a life member of Hadassah, has generously agreed to help support Hadassah through our author book discussion. With your generous donation for the June 10thbook discussion, you will receive not only a signed bookplate but a few other pieces of swag from Liza. Please be sure to send your donation to:

Hadassah

Attn: Cheri Titlebaum

5007 Providence Rd

Charlotte, NC 28226

Write Beverly’s Book Nook in the memo